Minsk: Over 20 persons detained on Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day. No mass action held
According to Telegram channel Lists of Detainees, not fewer than 26 people were detained on Monday in the Belarusian capital city. Some were released after spending a few hours in police stations. At that, there has been still no information about a number of detainees.
As reported earlier, the Belarusian authorities refused to issue permission for holding Chernobyl March, a traditional event in memory of victims on April 26, the day when the world marked the 35th anniversary of the ghastly accident. However, in fear of resuming protests, they pulled lots of security officers and special vehicles, including water cannons and the Rubezh defensive system, to Minsk.
About ten people were grabbed in the yard on Mendeleyev Street. Notably, they came to wish their friend a happy birthday and celebrate the end of her being under quarantine; for a joke, the youngsters were wearing biohazard suits and having posters in their hands. After being taken to the police department and questioned by officers, they were let go, tut.by reports.
At the same time, small protest and remembrance actions took place in the country. On Monday morning, women dressed in black staged a small march in Malinauka residential area in Minsk. 74-year-old Nina Bahinskaya, the legendary ‘mother of Belarusian revolution’ was seen in the city centre, she was wearing a coat with a poster ‘Freedom For People’ on it.
In a number of Belarusian cities and towns, small groups of protesters managed to gather together in forests and parks in order not to draw the police’s attention, others lit candles in memory of Chernobyl victims in churches, streets and at their own places.
